World People Making a Difference
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Change Agent With 'Sparkle' cheer teams, students with disabilities feel like they belong
Sparkle squads combine typically developing students and students with disabilities. The idea came from a 15-year-old who saw the systemic exclusion of disabled students from her high school's activities.
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Difference Maker After fleeing Syria, a musician reunites other refugees to perform in Europe
Raed Jazbeh has created the Syrian Expat Philharmonic Orchestra, which is helping to shatter stereotypical images of refugees, instead offering a portrayal of them as having much to contribute to society.
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Change Agent One woman’s outreach in US: ‘Meet a Muslim’ events
Since the attack in San Bernardino, Calif., Moina Shaiq has invited people to join her in a conversation.
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Change Agent In Cameroon, a bid to fight flooding creates jobs, reduces plastic waste
Coeur d'Afrique is paying young people to collect plastic litter, which is clogging rivers and blocking gutters. Cameroon's capital has seen some of its worst flooding on record in the past two years.
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Change Agent Tired of conditions in their city, Romans adopt a 'do it yourself' approach
Rome's residents are filling potholes, yanking weeds, and bagging trash. In doing the work, they're experimenting with what is a novel concept for many Italians: a sense of civic duty.
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Change Agent As immigrants move outside big cities, more US schools create welcome programs
Foreign-born students now make up 6 percent of the total US public school population. Experts say schools can be a place for integration.
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Change Agent What’s a carbon farmer? How ranchers are using dirt to tackle climate change.
Scientists believe that relatively simple land management techniques can increase the rate at which carbon is absorbed from the atmosphere and stored in soils.
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Change Agent An original CARE package recipient sends love to Syrian refugees
As a 7-year-old in postwar Germany, Renata Senter was moved by a CARE package sent by Americans. Now she can relate to what Syrian children are experiencing.
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Difference Maker Help for female immigrants fleeing violence is this lawyer’s calling
Anne Chandler has marshaled a team in Houston to take on complex and protracted cases – many of which were rejected by other lawyers who deemed them ‘unwinnable.’
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Change Agent A former dropout reinvents the job search
Ali Mahlodji launched the Whatchado Web service, which has more than 1 million users across several European countries. It matches users who have similar characteristics and also features video profiles.
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Change Agent Yes, New York City has sea turtles and seals, and here's who's rescuing them
The Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation picks up stranded seals, dolphins, and sea turtles from New York State’s 2,625 miles of coastlines, beaches, bays, and estuaries.
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Change Agent Youth orchestra provides an oasis from San Salvador's gangs
The Don Bosco Youth Symphony Orchestra and Chorus aims to keep teenagers off San Salvador's streets and away from the gangs. Being part of the orchestra gives the youths a sense of identity and purpose.
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Change Agent Your old clothes can help Malala send girls to school
In the 'Pass the Bag' campaign, people can send clothes to a San Francisco-based program that sells the clothing online and gives 40 percent of the proceeds to the Malala Fund.
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May 17, 2016
Photos of the day 05/17
Toast the dog, an Internet celebrity, arrives for the 20th Annual Webby Awards in New York on Monday.
More People Making a Difference
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Change Agent Shipping containers make headway as housing options (yes, with windows)
With many people struggling to pay rent, a surprising solution could be as close as the nearest port. But shipping-container housing is a sore subject for some local governments.
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Change Agent Now we're cooking: Course shows families how to make affordable, healthy meals
Almost 370,000 families across the US have taken part in Cooking Matters' programs, which are part of the national No Kid Hungry campaign.
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Change Agent To reduce child abuse, one group teaches inmates about child safety
The hope is that the inmates will pass their knowledge on to friends and bring lessons to a wider environment, says a member of a child abuse prevention group in Indiana.
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Change Agent Modern beekeeping offers Ethiopian youths a sweeter future
A recently launched program aims to provide work for about 12,500 Ethiopians in beekeeping and silkworm farming. It's supporting out-of-school and unemployed young people between ages 18 and 24.
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Difference Maker With World War II museum, a collector wants to get people to think
Kenneth Rendell has spent more than 50 years collecting World War II artifacts. More than 7,500 objects are on display in Natick, Mass.
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Change Agent Bakers, teachers, painters line up to volunteer to save lives in Syria
The Syrian Civil Defense, also known as the White Helmets, describes itself as the largest civil society organization operating in areas outside of government control. It is often the first in when the shells hit.
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Difference Maker A former street child in Afghanistan, now giving back where he found help
Hashmatullah Hayat works at a school in Afghanistan for street children, and his life story is an inspiration to the kids studying there.
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Change Agent In teaching self-defense, a taekwondo champ builds young women's confidence
Lina Khalifeh created SheFighter in Jordan to help prepare women to defend themselves, especially in parts of the world where there are repressive attitudes toward women.
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Change Agent Hiding in plain sight, a hair salon reaches Mexican trafficking victims
A hair salon in Mexico City, which keeps women coming back with rock-bottom prices, is in fact a front for a charitable operation aimed at rescuing sex trafficking victims and giving them the chance at new lives.
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Change Agent How two students in the South are helping to feed hungry kids
Two friends – Jack Henslee in Georgia and Jack Dudley in Alabama – have developed Food4Kids chapters to give meals to a combined total of about 280 children.
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